With a personal computer and an appropriate software package, a user can produce virtually any type of document that may be desired. For example, word processing software is used to produce text documents. Graphic design or computer-aided design software can be used to produce diagrams, charts, graphs, designs, etc. Spreadsheet software allows a user to manage large amounts of financial and other types of information. Database software similarly allows a user to manage various databases of information such as, client contact information, address and phone number information or “to do” items.
Frequently, it is desirable to generate a hardcopy of a document or data set that is produced or stored on a personal computer or server. A hardcopy may be desired, for example, for record keeping purposes or to share with another party. Consequently, a wide variety of printers and printing devices have been developed that can receive a print job from a host computer and produce a hardcopy of the document or data represented by that print job.
As used herein and in the appended claims, the terms “printer” and “printing device” are defined to mean any device that produces a hardcopy from electronic data, including, but not limited to, laser printers, inkjet printers, dot matrix printers, plotters, facsimile machines, digital copiers, multi-function peripherals, and the like. A printer or printing device may produce images on a variety of print media that are in color or are monochromatic.
The term “print job” is defined as data that has been specifically formatted for submission to a particular printer from which the printer can generate a hardcopy representing an underlying data set from which the print job was created.
Most personal computers include programming that will be referred to generally as a “printer driver.” A printer driver is a piece of software or firmware that receives data or a document to be printed from an application running on the computer. The printer driver formats the data for use by a corresponding printer, i.e., creates a print job, and then transmits the print job to the printer. Using the print job, the printer can produce a hardcopy of the underlying data or document.
Computer networks can interconnect a number of devices including personal computers, servers, data storage devices and printers. Using a computer network, a user can receive a data file generated elsewhere. If desired, this data file can be printed on a printer connected to the recipient computer in the same manner as data files that are originally created on that recipient computer. Additionally, a host computer may be connected to a printer through a network and may submit print jobs to that printer through the network.
With the use of computer networks, a user may be operating a networked computer that sends print jobs to a networked printer that is located in another room or at some distance from the networked computer. If the user is printing a document that is confidential or sensitive, the user may not want to send a print job over the network, have the job printed and sitting on the printer for some period of time before the user can retrieve it.
Additionally, a user may not know when or where a hardcopy of an electronic document will be wanted. Perhaps the user is traveling and does not wish to carry hardcopies of the document. The document could be stored on a floppy or optical disk. But having the document on a disk will cause the user to find a computer with a disk drive and printer where the computer has the right type of software to open and print the file from the disk. In addition, the capacity of media such as a floppy disk, is sometimes much too small for the files that are to be printed.